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While several of its products are in the field trial stage under the Eastern Command, the RFPs have been received from the Northern Command of the Indian Army. Among the products being developed by the company are boots and crampons, ice pitons, hammer pitons, sleeping bags and multi-purpose bags, besides clothing items. TCL commenced functioning under its present format in October 2021 after it was carved out of the erstwhile Ordnance Factory Board.

TCL is working on indigenously developing specialised gear needed for our personnel posted in difficult terrain, from mountainous regions to extremely cold conditions. We had been importing most of these gear entirely or at least major components of them.

With four manufacturing units located across the country, TCL besides catering to the requirements of the defence personnel, including those in the Ministry of Home Affairs forces, also supplies to the police of various states. Its range of products includes clothing items, accessories and technologically advanced products to equip personnel serving in environmental conditions from -50 degrees Celsius to 50 degrees Celsius – from glaciers to deserts.

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The army will invoke the fast-track procedure under emergency procurement to buy the highly-mobile, multi-configurable, wheeled vehicles, the officials said.

The development comes amid the lingering standoff with the Chinese army along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Ladakh sector and tensions spilling over into the eastern sector too.

In a request for proposal (RFP) seeking the participation of prospective bidders, the army on January 2  said these vehicles should be helicopter transportable and be able to operate at an altitude of 16,000 feet. “Their ability to operate in snow-covered undulating terrain with long endurance makes them ideally suitable for last-mile delivery (LMD) tasks,” the RFP said.

The army plans to operate these vehicles in areas in temperatures ranging from minus 20 degrees to plus 45 degrees. An inbuilt cold engine start system is another key army requirement. Also, the engine power and operating range of these vehicles should not be less than 30 HP and 100 Km, respectively. These vehicles are expected to be deployed in Ladakh and the eastern sector too, the officials said.

The army is swiftly upgrading its capability along the border with China with a variety of weapons and systems including artillery guns, swarm drone systems that can carry out offensive missions in enemy territory, longer-range rockets, remotely piloted aerial systems and high-mobility protected vehicles, while also pursuing the development of light tanks for mountain warfare and futuristic infantry combat vehicles (FICVs).

The new logistics rough terrain vehicles should have a rollover protection system, and service life should be at least nine years or 80,000 km, the RFP said. It also details the product support, engineering support package, spares and training package for the operators. The vehicles have to be delivered within 12 months of the signing of the contract.

The army’s focus on building combat capability along the contested border with China is part of an overarching plan to steadily enhance its operational readiness to counter any challenge presented by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).

The border standoff between India and China erupted in May 2020. While the two sides have had partial success in disengaging rival soldiers from some friction areas on LAC in Ladakh, talks are still on to end the deadlock that has derailed the bilateral relationship. Disengagement of soldiers from all friction points is essential before de-escalation of the conflict can take place, and, finally, de-induction of troops and weapons.

Corps commanders of the two armies held talks on the Chinese side of the Chushul-Moldo border meeting point on December 20, just 11 days after several Indian and Chinese soldiers were injured in a clash along LAC at Yangtse, located near Tawang in Arunachal Pradesh. However, there was no indication of forward movement in addressing the border row in the Ladakh sector during the 17th round of military talks.

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“Ballistic helmets with protection against 9mm bullets have been inducted in service in lieu of fiberglass helmets. With the threat of 7.62 x 39mm bullets to the troops, there is a need to induct ballistic helmets with higher protection parameters,” a request for proposal (RFP) issued by Army Headquarters this week states. “Existing threat along the Line of Control and Line of Actual Control and counter terrorist environment necessitates minimum protection against high-speed rifle bullets and blast fragments,” the RFP adds.

The army has projected a requirement for 80,000 helmets, which includes 3,600 helmets for troops deployed on anti-terrorist operations with the Rashtriya Rifles in Jammu and Kashmir. The indigenous content should be at least 50 per cent.

The Army has specified that the helmets must provide protection from 7.62×39 mm mild steel core bullets at 10 meters as well as from high-speed blast fragments. These should also incorporate tactical rails for attachment of additional equipment such as night vision devices, face visor, torch and in-service radio communication sets.

In June 2020, the Army had issued a request for information to the industry for the procurement of one lakh ballistic helmets that were capable of providing protection against 7.62 mm bullets. Ballistic helmets are made of various composite materials and are lighter and stronger than traditional metallic headgear.

Army officers said that a 7.62 mm rifle bullet is much more lethal than a 9 mm bullet fired from a pistol or sub-machinegun, besides having a longer range. The muzzle velocity of the 7.62 mm AK-47 assault rifle is 2,350 feet per second as compared to 1,312 feet per second of the MP-5, a widely used sub-machinegun.

After phasing out the 7.62 mm Ishpore self loading rifles in the late 1990s, the Army used the INSAS 5.56 mm rifles and light machinegun, then in line with the global trend of using a smaller caliber for assault rifles. There is now a doctrinal shift to revert back to 7.62 mm caliber.

The Army’s recent inductions of the SIG Sauer 716 and AK-203 assault rifles to replace the INSAS have 7.62 mm caliber. Based upon its experiences in counter terrorist operations and asymmetric warfare, the Army is opting for higher caliber personal weapons with the objective of “shoot to kill” rather than the post world war western philosophy of “shoot to incapacitate” by using lighter bullets as wounded soldiers created additional administrative and logistical problems for the enemy. Army officers said that weapons with a higher kill probability are preferred in anti-terrorist operations, especially where a lone terrorist or a small group may be acting on their own.

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